Familiar Phantom
by nicoleemerson1310
Summary: *Spoiler Alert* I really liked this game (Phantom of Venice) but disliked their choice of culprits. The scene where Nancy's locket is stolen fully captures my thoughts on who should have been the culprit. For all you fellow Nancy Drew fans out there, I hope you enjoy! I had fun writing!
1. Phantom Encounter

**A/N: Just a fun thought for a different way this scene and the ending of the game could have played out. If you have any ideas about alternate scenes/endings from other Nancy Drew games feel free to PM me or leave a comment below. If it inspires me enough, I may make it into a story! :) Please review and leave some of your thoughts in the comments. **

Nancy felt the weight of person's presence against her bedroom's door. She was speaking with Ned on the phone and did her best to swallow her mounting uneasiness.

"Ned, I have to go, I'll call you back. Something feels… off." Her tone was whispered, wondering if perhaps someone had been eavesdropping on her call. It would mean disaster for her undercover status.

"Sure," his tone was helpful as usual and she swallowed. _Don't you get it? Your girlfriend might be in danger_, "Talk to you later Nance."

Click.

Nancy laughed, a forced laugh and faked a happy ending to the call.

"Sure, I'll let you go. Bye, Ned." She placed the receiver back into its place.

Footsteps outside the door.

That was no accident, she knew someone had been listening to her conversation. But who?

She walked around the room and ran a hand through her hair. She walked out onto the balcony and looked around taking in with new eyes the water below, the courtyard just under her. Oh, if only there was some other escape.

**Later That Night…**

Nancy sat bolt upright and then saw him-

The phantom was leaning over her roommate's bed. She noticed the vacancy of Helena's bed and her breath cemented itself all the way down into her lungs, not allowing a single bit of air through.

Of course. She was alone with the phantom. Should she pretend to still be asleep?

_No_.

She looked around for her phone, for a weapon, for anything.

But he must have heard her, because he turned walked in her direction. She glared at him boldly, pretending her heart wasn't pounding a thousand beats a second.

"Who are you?" Nancy asked and took a swipe at his mask once he was close enough. He leaned back, catching her hand in an instantly excruciating vice grip. She wanted to show no weakness and not provide him with the satisfaction of knowing her inability of escape. His grip only tightened more at her flailing and she actually wondered if his fingers would crush her wrist. Her teeth scraped bottom row against top. Finally as a last resort, she decided to use her other hand, but the inevitable happened, just as she feared. He latched easily onto her hand, and held both in his one, large hand.

In that instant, staring at her hands, both held by his, she felt small.

"Don't you think for a second you are going to get away with this," Nancy kept her words calm with measured breaths. He stared at her through the mask, eyes not visible under the film. She knew there were eyes there, though, staring at her. He wasn't doing anything. He was just watching her, that's what he had to be doing. She attempted to scream, but he clamped his free hand around her mouth, and shook his head too slowly. She despised him more than she had anyone. He reached forward to her neck, and she swallowed in terror. He shook his head at her terror, at least she suspected he did, and then caressed her jaw.

Her body felt a wave of slimy ice water wash over her. He had caressed her?

She wanted so badly to slap him, bring tears to his eyes, perhaps even bite his hand. That thought stunned her- she could! She looked for his hand and lunged her head forward, but his reaction speed was one step ahead of her.

Next thing she knew, he had yanked the locket from her neck too quickly and released her wrists, leaving them to throb uncontrollably. She sprang from her sheets and chased after him just in time to watch him leap effortlessly onto the balcony.

She gasped, looking below. Far below.

He was gone.


	2. Next Day

**_Next Day…._**

Nancy stepped groggily from her room. She had barely slept last night after the Italian police had arrived, all doing their best, and Nancy doing her best, to pretend they didn't know each other. She had slipped into bed once they had finally gone, but every other ten minutes, just as she was drifting to sleep, she heard a footstep and turned only to find no one.

She felt Colin glance up from his work space at her, probably dying to talk to her about last night.

"Are you alright? I heard about last night!" He called as she almost kept walking away. She turned to face him directly and his eyes immediately widened in horror. There around her neck was a bruise , not in the very front but wrapping around. A thin red line where it had been ripped carelessly from her neck. He swallowed and she sighed.

"It looks a lot worse than it feels, don't worry." Nancy swallowed the disgust that had arisen from the memory. Her fingers glided up to her neck and he shrunk back again, only the horror engraved across his features was mixed equally with anger this time.

"The brute bruised your wrists?" he cried and shook his head. He ran a hand through his hair, and Nancy became acutely aware of how little it was of his concern. She felt uncomfortably that he liked her far more than she had even realized, perhaps even to the point of danger. She had never experienced this on a case so far. Sure, a few people had flirted with her before.

There have been a few.. Dave Gregory came to mind. He had actually asked her outright if she was spoken for! Her heart warmed fondly at the thought of the cowboy. Her brain skimmed over the other encounters she had. Who else? Darryl Gray, of course! He had been near the beginning of her ventures. Oh and then there was Rick Arlen, but that had been almost ludicrous, considering the age gap he had so flagrantly ignored. Ned's frequent jealous comments concerning a certain older Hardy brother flew to mind, but she even quicker squelched it. It took her only a moment to move back to the conversation she had so obviously lost track of.

"He did, but he'll never know it. It felt as if he would break both of my wrists…" she shivered and his eyebrows knit together.

"I wish I had known!" he cried all too passionately.

"Oh, Colin, don't worry about it. It's over and Ned will get me another locket. I'm sure these bruises will go away quickly."

"Nancy, I'm so sorry!" he declared, sounding genuinely apologetic. His earnest appeal warmed her heart, just as his demeanor usually did. Nancy felt the conversation topic had continued too long for her liking, and so asked what he was doing.

"Just working on these mosaics." he grimaced obviously wanting to continue the discussion.

"Don't worry, Colin, I promise I'll be perfectly fine. I cannot say the same for the Phantom."

"What do you mean?"

"Criminals only last so long; he'll be caught, and his assault against me will only add to his charges."

"Nancy…" his face looked pinched and almost like he had been stabbed through and through.

"Colin, is something wrong?"

"No, no," he shook his head, yet the expression remained, "It is only that I am so… so sorry that this awful and disgusting thing happened to you of all people.

"You'd be surprised at what has happened to me, _of all people_." She commented before a quick goodbye.


End file.
